The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has dropped a bombshell, suing Live Nation and Ticketmaster for allegedly colluding with scalpers to inflate ticket prices to shocking levels on the secondary market.

According to the FTC, Ticketmaster has been knowingly allowing scalpers to manipulate the system for years, violating both the FTC Act and the Better Online Ticket Sales Act. This scandal has reportedly cost fans billions in inflated prices and hidden fees, undermining artists' efforts to keep tickets affordable.

Rather than blocking scalpers, it appears Ticketmaster actively aided these brokers by providing technical support. This helped scalpers bypass the ‘fake’ ticket-buying limits that only applied to genuine fans wanting to attend events.

The FTC investigation found that major brokers controlled thousands of Ticketmaster accounts, racking up hundreds of thousands of tickets and effectively shutting out average ticket buyers. Between 2020 and 2024, one notorious broker allegedly managed over 13,000 accounts to bypass ticket limits. Despite being aware of this loophole, Ticketmaster reportedly chose not to intervene, fearing a hit to revenue.

In internal communications, executives admitted turning a "blind eye" to scalpers had become company policy, with one employee noting that ignoring red flags from flagged brokers was a matter of profitability.

Ticketmaster’s Golden Fee Machine: A Triple Dip on Profits!

Holding a dominant 80% market share in primary ticketing for major events, Ticketmaster has been accused of maximizing its revenue through a practice they call "triple dipping." This involves charging fees at the initial ticket sale, again from resellers, and finally from buyers in the secondary market. From 2019 to 2024, Ticketmaster is reported to have made an eye-watering $11 billion, nearly $4 billion of which came from resale fees alone.

While some employees raised concerns about ticketing abuses, management frequently ignored their warnings. For example, in a 2018 email, one Ticketmaster engineer highlighted the absurdity that legitimate brokers and scalpers operated under the same rules, ultimately leaving fans with inflated prices.

Employees expressed frustration, with one noting in 2019 that brokers flagged for violating purchasing limits were still thriving, to the point where managers seemed more concerned about losing revenue than about fair ticket distribution.

The FTC alleges Ticketmaster also profited from its ability to adjust ticket prices on the secondary market. For instance, one broker resold $81,000 worth of Coldplay tickets for $170,000, while another turned a $47,000 investment into $94,000 at a Chris Stapleton concert—meaning artists see none of these profits.

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